Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray, back, hangs from the rim after dunking over San Antonio Spurs center Pau Gasol during the second half of an NBA basketball game Friday, Feb. 23, 2018, in Denver. The Nuggets won 122-119.

Still, the potential “shenanigans,” as Malone put it, for Tuesday’s final meeting between the Nuggets and Lakers at Staples Center added an extra layer of intrigue to a high-stakes contest, as Denver aimed to keep pace in the Western Conference playoff chase. But Murray will remain a focal point for the Nuggets well past their visit to Los Angeles. The continued development of the recently minted 21-year-old coming down the stretch of his first season as an NBA starting point guard will be crucial for a Nuggets team aiming for its first playoff berth since 2013.

“When he’s playing with confidence, he’s big for our team, especially coming down late in games,” said Barton, whose game boasts its own level of flash. “No matter if he’s hot or he’s not having his best game, still keep his confidence in being able to make plays.”

Murray did not make himself available for interviews before Tuesday’s game in Los Angeles. His production has been up-and-down since the all-star break, which Malone partially attributed to Murray’s lack of rest while participating in All-Star Weekend and partially to his season-long demands. While standout big man Nikola Jokic drew headlines when he was benched for the entire fourth quarter in last Tuesday’s loss at Dallas, Murray also sat for the final period and finished with six points on 2-of-8 shooting, zero rebounds and zero assists.

Since then, Murray has averaged 17.7 points, 5.3 assists and 4.3 rebounds over his past three games entering Tuesday. Though Malone constantly says Murray is typically a player whose intensity skyrockets on both ends when he sees an early shot fall through the net, the opposite occurred Friday against the Lakers. After starting 1-of-5 from the field, Murray scored 13 of his 22 points in the second half (including a 9-for-9 mark from the free-throw line) to apparently prompt some celebratory chatter.

Malone wants Murray to keep playing in “attack mode” to quickly push the Nuggets’ high-powered offense into its flow. The coach wants Murray to shoot without hesitation when he’s open. And Malone wants Murray to pick it up on the defensive end, as he’s recently been beaten too often off the dribble or has not stayed up on the ball-handler against the pick and roll.

“If he does all those things,” Malone said, “whether he’s making shots or not, he’s impacting the game in a positive manner.”

Malone said he had no issues with Murray’s behavior Friday. After all, Murray is a rare Nugget who plays with an outward edge, launching arrows when he makes a key 3-pointer or flexing his muscles when he gets inside for a dunk.

That fire is an asset, Malone and teammates say. And how the second-year point guard channels that mentality into his play down the stretch will be crucial during the Nuggets’ playoff push.

“Overall, for a kid that just turned 21, he’s had an outstanding second season,” Malone said. “That’s a reason that we’re seven games (over .500) with 15 to go.”

Gina Mizell covers the Denver Nuggets for The Denver Post. She joined The Post in September 2017, after 3 1/2 years covering Oregon State football for The Oregonian in Portland. She was named the 2016 Oregon Sportswriter of the Year by the National Sports Media Association. She was the Oklahoma State football beat reporter for The Oklahoman from 2011-14 and a sports reporter/columnist for The Beaumont (Texas) Enterprise from 2010-11. She is a 2010 graduate of the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University.

In a fresh episode of the Nuggets Ink Podcast, Gina Mizell and Nick Kosmider talk about a crushing loss for the Nuggets in Los Angeles, the team's bench struggles, the brutal Western Conference and whether the Nuggets have run out of time in the quest for the postseason.